Bad Day at Black Rock

 

You know what one of my favorite things is?  

When you have a movie you have been meaning to watch, but you just can't bring yourself to do it.  Maybe you promised someone under duress that you would see it.  Maybe you just aren't in the right mood.  Or maybe it's the type of film that just seems like "homework."  

Well, I love it when you watch one of those movies and it just blows you away.  I had that experience with Bad Day at Black Rock, a film I've been meaning to see for about a decade and finally forced myself to sit down and just watch.  And I am so glad I did. 

One dusty afternoon, the train stops in the tiny town of Black Rock.  The townspeople are instantly suspicious because the train hasn't stopped at the Black Rock station for years.  And even more suspicious is the one-armed man named John J. Macreedy (Spencer Tracy) who steps off the train and immediately starts asking questions about a missing Japanese farmer named Komoko.   Confronted with a dark secret long thought buried, the townspeople all react in different ways to Macreedy's inquisitiveness - some with evasiveness, others with obstinance, and others with violence, but the one thing they all have in common is that they refuse to answer any of his questions.  And, basically, that's it.  There isn't much more to the plot.  

There is no doubt that this film is a slow burn.  There are a few tense encounters, sure, but most of the movie really is Macreedy just walking around the town, having conversations with people.  This is not a fast paced film.  I also don't think the mystery is very mysterious at all.  It really doesn't take long for the audience to figure out the town's secret, and that unfortunately makes the plot itself less interesting.    

But who cares?  Look, I know what I just wrote doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement, but Bad Day at Black Rock is a terrific film. And I think the mystery itself (or the lack of it) doesn't really matter.  In fact, I don't think the movie even really cares about it.  Bad Day at Black Rock is more interested in the behavior surrounding the mystery.  The personal dynamics.  The suspicious mentality of a small western town that is slowly rotting away.  

And the film is also a fascinating study on societal bullying.  It's not really a depiction of playground bullying; this is more of an instance of when a bully is able to get his way in a town that should know better through the sheer force of his aggressiveness.  The effect is so complete that some folks in the town don't even realize that they've been beaten into submission and actually look to that bully for leadership.  It's frustrating to see because it's real.  We've all seen that happen at one time or another.  There's a sort of synergy in the town between the community leader and the rest of its citizens.  Nobody is really happy, it seems, but it works and life goes on.  And then you add a wild card in Macreedy who just keeps walking around, amiably asking his questions, and causing cracks to form in the community's shield.  The movie almost feels like a morality play, and it's really interesting to watch.     

So back to those conversations I mentioned.  The movie has a lot of them, but they aren't boring when they are as well written and as well acted as these.  This film has a superb cast.  In addition to Spencer Tracy, you have Robert Ryan, Walter Brennan, Dean Jagger, Ernest Borgnine and Lee Marvin.   Between those actors, you have 17 Oscar animations and 9 Oscar wins.  That's quite a high caliber cast, and they all deliver.   The Oscar-nominated direction was by John Sturges, who also directed The Great Escape and The Magnificent Seven, and the script by Millard Kaufman was also nominated.  I also think the cinematography by William Mellor probably deserved a nod.  The film certainly makes the most of the widescreen cinematography, capturing the bleak desert and the mountains that frame it in the distance.  But I was more impressed with how the town was shot.  Black Rock is a dying town.  The tiny main street is aped by the surrounding barrenness, in danger of being swallowed by the dust and rock.  It's a strong visual depiction that either represents the last of the Old West being subsumed by the modern world or the rot that is seeping in and killing the town because of its dark secret, or maybe a little of both.  Either way, it works beautifully.  

Bad Day at Black Rock's producer Dory Shary was always attracted to films that had a social conscious, and I am sure he saw this film as an allegory against McCarthyism and the Red Scare.  But I was also impressed with its take on xenophobia.  World War 2 was still fresh in everyone's mind and here was a movie that was already questioning the injustice of the Japanese internment camps, and confronting those who hated Japanese-Americans because of their heritage.  Granted, it tries to tackle this subject without a single Japanese-American in the cast, but still...it's a step in the right direction.  For the 1950s, I was impressed with the mature and professional way the script weaves this thread in, without once seeming preachy.  

And at the end of the day, that is thanks to Macreedy himself, Spencer Tracy.  Tracy was always known for his very naturalistic style, and that is a huge asset to this story, which could have easily fallen into moralistic preaching.  There is not a word that comes out of his mouth that I don't believe.  And the impact of his performance resonates.  

I could keep going on, but that's probably a good place to stop.  I don't want to ruin anything!  I went in knowing very little about Bad Day at Black Rock, and maybe it's better than you do, too.  Sure, not much happens in the story, but it is a movie I wanted to immediately watch again as soon as it finished.  And that doesn't happen often.  

MVP:

Even with a cast this good, there is no doubt in my mind.  The MVP is Spencer Tracy.  He is just playing on a different level than everyone else (and everyone else is really good).  As I was watching Bad Day at Black Rock, I realized I had actually never seen a Spencer Tracy movie before.  I'm not sure how that is possible since I love classic films.  I had seen It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, but that doesn't count because he's barely in it.  No, this was my first Spencer Tracy movie and I am bit embarrassed to say that.  Don't be surprised if you start seeing more Spencer Tracy movies pop up on this blog sometime in the next year!  :) 

BEST LINE:

Macreedy: You know, I know what your trouble is, son.  You'd like me to die quickly, wouldn't you, without wasting too much of your time; or quietly, so I won't embarrass you too much; or even thankfully, so your memory of the occasion won't be too unpleasant. 

TRIVIA:

Dore Shary knew his man.  He knew what the film needed.  Spencer Tracy was clearly Macreedy.  But for some reason, Tracy kept turning the part down.  I'm sure there were a number of reasons.  I read that he felt he was too old for the part, which to be fair, he kind of is.  But Shary knew that Tracy was the best man for this part.  He had the script rewritten so that Macreedy was a one-armed man, hoping that the acting challenge would entice Tracy.  The esteemed actor was tempted, but still refused to commit.  Finally, Shary found the trick that would win his man over.  He sent a memo to Tracy telling him not to worry about it any more.  Alan Ladd (Shane) had agreed to take the part.  Tracy reacted immediately, calling Shary to get his part back.